Ribfest returns to Orillia
A favourite seasonal food has returned to the Sunshine City.
Orillia's annual Ribfest kicked off on Friday at Tudhope Park. This year 17 trailers featuring four different vendors are available for residents to choose from.
"It's just a real simple day out," said Mark Wilson of Northern Heat Rib Series, the organizer of Ribfest. "This is what I really love about it, and we come to a lot of cities, and I love it when these families come out, and you see kids running around, playing games, getting their face painted, having funnel cakes and eating ribs. It's just a great, simple family thing to do."
Northern Heat Rib Series holds 18 Ribfests throughout southern Ontario. Orillia is their fourth stop of the year, setting up in Orillia on June 9 after last visiting Windsor.
All vendors start with the same ribs but compete for both people's choice awards and judge's choice awards each weekend based on how they prepare their ribs. While they all start the same, how each vendor smokes them, rubs them and finishes them makes all the difference.
"They all put so much love and attention into submitting their judge's ribs, and when we announce them on Sundays, they are nervous," said Wilson. "We've seen people as they hand over their judging ribs; they bless their box to make sure they get that little bit of extra help. It's a serious business to them."
They hope to match last year's turnout, which saw 18,000 people show up.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.